


cosmic

by brandywine421



Category: Daredevil (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Space, Alternate Universe - Space Opera, Artificial Intelligence, Gen, M/M, Original Sentient Robot-ish Characters, Sentient Spacecraft
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-17
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 07:47:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27599794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brandywine421/pseuds/brandywine421
Summary: Steve and Bucky had spent time, separately and together, as crew on Daredevil between official assignments.The sentient ship was always Matt's and they'd never been able to squeeze the story of how he bonded with the moody starship.  Daredevil was one of the few known species of aliens that took on a symbiotic bond with their crew and she had latched on to Matt as a teenager.A blind orphan from an abandoned moon with exceptional fighting skills was never meant to pilot a starship, let alone one with advanced cloaking and weapons tech.  She was a gorgeous spacecraft but she chose Matt over all else, even hunting Void enemies - she wouldn't fire a laser without her pilot's permission.The Corps spent years trying to convince the pair to sign on but Red preferred freelance, chasing pirates, transporting refugees and helping planets on a case by case basis instead of enlisting officially.*aka 'the one where Matt Murdock is the pilot of a sentient spaceship called Daredevil'
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Matt Murdock & Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Jessica Jones & Matt Murdock, Matt Murdock & Tony Stark, Matt Murdock/Wade Wilson, Miles Morales & Matt Murdock & Peter Parker
Comments: 20
Kudos: 47





	1. Chapter 1

Steve settled in for another cycle on this murky moon when his transmitter stayed silent and the barkeep remembered their order from all the other cycles.

James took a long pull off his brew and flicked his eyes around the pub. Steve sighed, expecting the question, the same question - 

"Not going to ask you," James cut into his thoughts with an upturn of his lips as he raised his mech arm for a wave. "Because I see someone else I can ask."

He'd received the transmission a full six cycles before James checked his messages and found a matching one. They argued loud and long and made up louder and longer. The decision was made before their ex-commanding office requested them to move to a more 'secluded' part of the Corps' space station.

They were soldiers without a war, pilots without ships, explorers with nowhere left to see.

The transmission, though, was a revelation.

"Buy an old lady a brew, Barnes," Jessica Jones, one of the RBD's best pilots grunted as she settled on the stool beside him and elbowed him hard in the ribs. "Cap."

"Steve, please. Damn good to see you, Jess," he added with a kiss to her cheek.

"Hey, settle something for us - you bang Red?"

"Everyone in the 'verse has banged Red," she grinned. "Monogamy's not every human's thing."

"Told you," James elbowed his opposite rib.

"Trouble at home?" Jessica teased. "Guess you're here for the same reason I am."

"When's the last time - "

"He visits, but it's been a while. Got a new crew, heard some things I shouldn't repeat. You?" she asked, watching him closely.

"Same, but - Daredevil wouldn't steer him wrong, right?" Steve asked.

"Heard some things, Cap. Let's wait and see," she evaded.

Steve and Bucky had both spent time, separately and together, as crew on Daredevil between official assignments. The sentient ship was always Matt's and they'd never been able to squeeze the story of how he bonded with the moody starship. Daredevil was one of the few known species of aliens that took on a symbiotic bond with their crew and she had latched on to Matt as a teenager. A blind orphan from an abandoned moon with exceptional fighting skills was never meant to pilot a starship, let alone one with advanced cloaking and weapons tech. She was a gorgeous spacecraft but she chose Matt over all else, even hunting Void enemies - she wouldn't fire a laser without her pilot's permission.

The Corps spent years trying to convince the pair to sign on but Red preferred freelance, chasing pirates, transporting refugees and helping planets on a case by case basis instead of enlisting officially. 

Steve had been one of the first commanders to figure out Daredevil would play backup for a good cause (and pushing back the Void solders was the best cause) and he liked to think of Matt as a friend, distant and mercurial to be sure, but a friend.

"Thought you were settled in your zone," James said after they'd ordered another round of Brew.

"Shit happens. I don't give a damn about being famous and Trish - she doesn't give a damn about anything else. Been bouncing around since we ended things so Matt's transmission was a welcome surprise," Jess admitted.

"He using his name now? 'Cause I never got the 'Red' thing," a new voice chimed in, taking the stool beside Bucky. "Guy's blind, what does he know about colors?"

"Stark," James growled and Steve's internal alarms flared. "The hell are you doing here?"

The man shrugged, sparks shimmering under his skin in the dim pub. "Got a transmission that interested me."

Tony Stark was known across the Universe, far better respected than his father who created most of the Corps' weapons and fighter crafts. Tony had picked up his late father's work but became much more selective when the 'Verse went to war, turning his genius toward helping the victims and casualties on all sides of the conflict instead of creating 'more destruction'.

But the guy didn't leave his zone - he had the most secure and well-defended station in the 'Verse and there was no way he would have a reason to be on a moon primarily for supply and refueling stops.

"Daredevil named him 'Red', it's his pilot sign," James grumbled, with a nod to the suddenly curious barkeep. "Bring us a pitcher, my tab's good." Steve remembered that Stark had been involved in Bucky's replacement arm to keep him in the field but that was one of the 'not a good time' memories they didn't have to talk about.

"Wasn't able to ping him back but - I'm not willing to miss out on the offer," Stark said. "I mean, can you imagine? Of course you can or you wouldn't be here."

"Actually, I can't," Steve sighed. "But I want to find out for sure."

"Right on," Jessica said, raising her mug.

"You're all out of your minds," Bucky snickered. "I'm not here to crew another mission, I'm just here to hang out with Red and get back to cruising speed."

"Not a mission, a destination," Steve frowned.

Stark grinned. "Amen."

* * *

  
_"Found him!"_

Matt sat up at the sound and banged his head on the hard metal of - oh, he was in the vents again. "Dammit."

Daredevil's disappointment hummed through the metal as he reached for the panel to drop his legs through.

Miles was waiting, buzzing with energy. "We've been looking for you everywhere, were you - sleeping?"

Matt didn't protest the kid manhandling him toward his bunk and shoving him through the hatch. He couldn't get used to the new room, it was cold and grumbly and - 

"There's nothing wrong with your room, bed soft and fluffy and floaty just like you wanted," Miles said, nudging him forward to sit. 

"It's none of your business, Kid," Wade growled from nearby.

"Ignore him. Sometimes I sleep in the vents if the route's clear enough," Matt said. It was true, he did prefer the cold metal to warm comfort when he needed to think. Mope, whatever. "Surprised you're still here," he directed to Wade.

Wade shuffled over, shooing Miles out of the room and waiting for the door to close with a defined beep. So she was in on it with him, the traitor. "Do we need to talk?"

They probably needed to do that cycles ago but Matt leaned against him, letting his head rest on his rumpled shoulder. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize, Red. I didn't know you'd take it so hard - "

"I'm not, just - I got used to having you around," he sighed.

Wade kissed his forehead and shook him roughly. "Wash up, I want to meet these assholes you're trying to drag off on your newest suicide run."

Matt didn't correct him, they both knew better.

He wanted to believe it was another quest, another job to stack with the rest but it wasn't. This wasn't his idea, this was all Daredevil and as much as he owed his life, lives - everything - to Daredevil; the sentient spaceship had never requested a 'personal' mission.

They were partners, weren't they? Didn't Matt trust D to make good choices considering as a man, he made shitty ones all the time?

If D wanted to go to a part of the 'verse that didn't technically exist, of course Matt was going, too - of course. Right?

Right. He'd sent the transmission out to the friends he thought might want to tag in but knew the ship would censor the ones she didn't want to invite along. He had no idea who was waiting for him at the dock.

"You're really caught up in your head, Boss," Peter announced, flanked by Miles when he was sorting through his closet for off-ship interaction.

"Yeah, didn't mean to send you hunting. D won't find me if I'm sleeping and it's not an emergency. Everything all right?" Matt asked.

"Worried about you. I mean, we get that Wade's got other stuff to do but why do you need a full crew when you have us?" Peter questioned.

He shouldn't have put off this talk. He pulled on a fitted shirt and joined them by the desk. "You guys know how long the trip's going to be, right? You'll be two birth-cycles older and I can't promise we'll be within live-stream distance for your final education credits," Matt said.

"We know that, but we're all in," Miles said eagerly.

They were too young to have seen the havoc and death from the 'verse war but experienced their own kind of battles and loss and grief. Matt and D were lucky to have the pair of them. They'd make great spies but he liked their morals intact and wanted to keep them as crew as long as they were willing. They had the instincts and attention to detail that he needed in his life and on his crew.

"This might be a one way trip for me. I don't know if D's taking us on a rescue mission or a visit to her home galaxy or if she's chasing a tasty meteor storm. We've chased off the worst of the pirates, there's peace in most of the 'verse and - "

Daredevil beeped her encouragement from one of the consoles. "I'm trying to think of it as an extended vacation with old friends, mine and D's since I have no idea who she forwarded the transmissions to in the end."

"Stop censoring the boss, Daredevil, not cool," Miles scolded.

"She's been running my life for too long to make her stop now," Matt joked. "Besides, it's her mission and she should get to choose her crew."

Wade rapped on the hatch but D didn't open it right away. Peter squeezed his arm. "We already checked out the market and binged on local snacks so we're on maintenance while you go say your goodbyes - and hellos, I guess."

"Is there time to - " Matt started but Miles swatted at him.

"She's getting an extra-full service since she spawned another engine and renovated six of her pod-quarters."

Wade banged on the door again and cooed threats at D from the hallway.

"Thanks. Do I look presentable for the public?" Matt asked, mentally remapping the ship with Daredevil's ever-evolving additions. He didn't want to come back from the pub with another update to his quarters but he probably deserved it for sleeping in the vents again.

"I'll get your boots while you comb your hair," Peter offered.

* * *

  
Jessica caught Steve and Bucky's same curiosity when Matt held onto Stark for an extra-long hug when greetings were going around.

_"I didn't think you'd - "_

_"Of course I would - "_

_"But - "_

_"Don't you dare - "_

Deadpool, the notorious space pirate, was surprising enough but Matt's huddle with Stark was unexpected.

"Never heard that story," Deadpool said once the barkeep brought his brew.

"How long you been running with Red?" Bucky asked.

"Long enough for D to want me gone, she's an attention whore like - well, me," Deadpool grinned through his ragged mouth. "I hate to miss this trip, but I got some unfinished business with a black hole I can't put off any longer."

"If D didn't like you she would have bounced you through the airlock," Steve said.

"True, but I can't keep Matt all to myself, at least not yet," Deadpool winked. "He pulled me out of a bad situation and I had a great time paying it forward, alas, my time is up for now."

"He has no idea who he's talking to," Matt said, holding Tony's arm for guidance even if the four - five now - of them knew he didn't need it. Sure, his eyes might not work but the guy was far from blind.

"Since when are you all cuddly with the 'verse's most well-known hermit?" Deadpool asked bluntly. "You could have been calling in all the favors."

"Happened on one of my more - troublesome solo runs," Matt said. "And D called in a favor, you know she likes to flirt with all the operating systems around the 'verse."

Jessica desperately needed to hear this story considering Tony seemed as surprised as the rest of them. 

"You didn't even let me inside Daredevil when she dropped your bloody ass on my loading station," Tony said. "Are you saying she made the call to JARVIS?"

"I was so pissed," Matt laughed. "Granted, I was unconscious for most of the ride, but she hit up Stark's AI and traded medical care for something she wouldn't tell me later."

"More than something," Tony said, waving his sparkling fingers. "I'd be dead if you hadn't turned up with the element I needed."

"She could've dropped me at any med station or moon on the way to his corner of space, but no, had to fly all the way to chat with your computer in person. Your robots do great stitches, though," Matt said.

"Damn right they do," Stark grinned proudly.

"Since when do you get seduced by pirates?" Jessica asked, pressing a brew into his hand. He looked tired, probably moping about his latest paramour leaving - hopefully not because of the invitation.

"He was only half-assing the pirate stuff, helped me break up some smuggling in the outer rings," Matt said easily. "You know I can't sleep alone."

"Everybody knows that," Bucky and Stark said together. Steve glared at them both.

"I got a couple of kids, well, young enough that I can call them kids, on board finishing their certificates. I pay for their school, they empty trash and fix what D tells them to so I won't need you to fill your old positions unless you want to," Matt said.

"You aren't keeping me out of that cockpit," Jessica said honestly. Best view outside of her own, long retired, spaceship.

"We'll be making a few stops along the way but I've finally nailed down a course D approves of," Matt said, with a soft smile.

"So we really are going to her home galaxy?" Tony asked.

"I can't promise that's the destination but there's definitely something out there she wants to show us," Matt admitted.

"Daredevil also thinks he needs a real vacation even if she doesn't say it in words or anything," Wade offered.

"That's definitely not true," Matt groaned but Jessica filed it away.

* * *

Tony wanted to know absolutely everything about Daredevil but made promises to JARVIS and himself that he would follow Matt's lead on what he could touch and what he could hack. JARVIS was manmade, not organic or living in any natural way but ran on similar coding guidelines.

"She's bigger than I remember," Steve said as Matt led them up the ramp into the cargo bay. "This was full of bunks before."

"She shifts for the mission, unlike what you may have heard about her following my moods," Matt said. "Beds when we're transporting refugees or families, shielded crates for dangerous weapons and chemicals, and refrigeration units for food and supplies. She added some new quarters so everyone should have their own space and Miles says she upgraded the common room with a lagoon for exercise - but I have my suspicions they asked for a pool."

"What about the bridge?" Steve asked.

"Don't think she changed that, but you can see for yourselves," Matt led the way forward to the bow of the ship.

Tony boggled at the spanning window giving him a wide view of the sky above the landing dock and beyond.

"How - I mean, forgive me for being out of the loop but how do you pilot her?" Tony asked, hovering his fingers above the living walls.

"Daredevil's species seems to navigate through space in a similar way to my own senses," Matt said, sitting down in the pilot seat in front of the massive panel of flickering controls that he couldn't 'see'. Tony didn't get it.

"Matt uses soundwaves and air pressure to 'see'," Bucky explained. "Sniffs out plasma bombs and weapons better than any tech in the 'verse."

"I only ever knew one other ship like Daredevil and she had four pilots to watch the perimeters, bridge right on top like a bubble," Steve said.

"My senses are great in defined spaces," Matt told Tony. "It's how my teachers trained me to fight, raised me to be a spy for the Corps or the Voids, whoever bid the highest. When Daredevil took me on, she boosted my senses so much that I can expand far enough to sense vibrations across long distances, pick out the different sounds of spacecraft and planets when we're not grounded."

"Deep space is going to fuck you up, isn't it?" Steve asked.

"I might tether a little harder with Crew, have more bad dreams but - " Matt started before the engines rumbled in a reassuring purr.

"What's 'tethering' entail?" Tony asked.

"Cuddling, for contact," Jessica offered from the hatch, smiling at Daredevil's purring. "Lots of cooking experiments and music and ancient literature."

"This is a longer stint than the one we took, Jess, but hopefully we aren't being followed by Void attack fighters this time," Matt smiled. "And with Wade off the manifest, no outstanding warrants, right?"

"No promises," Bucky said.

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

"What's up with the kids?" Jess asked, ducking as the two hyperactive youth swung overhead to bypass them in their rush down the expansive hallway.

"What do you mean?" Matt asked, tilting his head curiously. "They're considered adults now, I didn't hire them 'til they were legal."

"Where did you find them? I mean, giving rides to pirates and ex-soldiers is one thing," she shrugged. "They're - not ruined yet."

"Not yet," he agreed. "Found them before I ran into Wade. They were running courier jobs on the Omni station and Peter flipped out when he saw Daredevil at the dock. The school signal's bad inside planetary orbit out that way, so they traded time on Omni so they could get more certifications. They came up with the swinging strings to get around the station faster - remind me to show off the battle gear they rigged up for me."

"Do you still need battle gear?" she asked.

He paused, thoughtful at the question and she slid her arm around his waist, knowing the contact would reassure him as they walked toward the large common room. "I didn't pack my weapons."

"I can't say I won't get into fights if I spend too off-ship, but the war's over and I spend more time sparring and training than I do actual fighting," Matt said. "You won't run into any danger - apart from your virtue - while you're on board."

She poked him. "I wasn't talking about bar brawls."

"Daredevil tucked in all her cannons when she did her latest remodels, but she doesn't want to talk about it - I can hear Bucky and Tony going through her specs," he added, with a nod toward the bridge. "Doubled up on the shields so I might ask her to turn those down a little once we get into open space."

Huh.

"I'm curious as hell, but I'm positive she's not taking us into a battle," he said, going behind the overstocked bar. He paused to sniff the air before filling two glasses from one of the taps.

"If she wants to show you something, it's sweet but also terrifying. I mean, what if she's a baby and we run into her family? They'd be gigantic," Jessica said, sipping the - yum - tasty brew.

"I don't know anything about her family. She may have hatched, probably in an asteroid field so she had lots of food," Matt said.

She knew Matt didn't communicate with the ship in 'words' but that it went further than just sharing emotions. If he was alone on the bridge, it was usually pin-drop quiet but he could always recite the coordinates, pressure and engine function to match the console displays.

"It's hard to explain," Matt sighed.

Miles and Peter flanked Steve into the room, watching him carry two oversized crates without letting them help. She knew they noticed the air-holes on the sides.

"It's like nobody understands how surprises work," Steve winked at her when she moved to help.

"D's really going all out if she agreed to this. How do you know she agreed to this?" Matt asked, laying both hands flat on top of the crates with a curious expression.

"Tony's AI can talk to her," Steve replied. "Your buddy was right, she really wants you to take a vacation."

Jessica laughed. "He doesn't even have a real job, he just has a spaceship."

"I don't think she considers it a vacation," Miles said. "More like she worries about you and thinks you need to relax."

"Exactly," Steve picked up before Matt could chime in. "Plus, we wanted to know what we could do to pay it forward since you're taking us on this epic adventure with only our company for your trouble."

"It's not like that," Matt frowned.

"Oh, but it is, buddy," Tony announced, swaggering into the room with a handheld tablet and Bucky on his heels with a bright expression. They were obviously excited about the 'surprise', too and she couldn't help but feel a little left out.

"D picked out the breed herself," Bucky said, sliding his arm around Steve and kissing his cheek. Ugh, they were going to make her miserable if they got along the whole time.

"The breed?" Peter and Miles questioned in creepy, excited unison.

Daredevil rumbled to life, engines powering up.

"You didn't. Please tell me you didn't - shit," Matt said when Steve finally opened the crates.

Shit was right. They were - goddamn adorable and entirely too fluffy and cuddly for Matt to handle on his own.

"They aren't native to this part of the 'verse," Matt said, carefully lifting the spotted creature from the first box. 

"I called in a favor," Tony said, taking out the second animal before the young guys exploded with curiosity. "Believe it or not, this is a major research opportunity and these particular hybrids are bred for space travel as support animals. They're herbivores and your ship has a self-sustaining garden that will feed them so it's not a drain on the resources."

Jessica examined the hybrid, strumming her fingers down the thick fur, soft, green and luscious with a happily wagging tail thumping against her arm but not making any sound. It had kind blue eyes and floppy ears. Matt's looked similar but with blue spots speckling the fur.

"Freckles and Fuzzy come from one of those tourist cruiser ships, they're used to lots of people but are genetically designed to help people who can't sleep alone," Steve said. "And they're sisters, so no worries about - extras."

"I had one when I was a kid," Matt said quietly, passing Freckles to Peter . "After I lost my sight, the medics assigned me one. My - teachers said it was too much of a crutch so I had to give it back but - there's no way Daredevil would have known that."

"Right, like she doesn't know everything about you, Boss," Peter said.

"Thank you," Matt said and Jessica could tell he meant it. But she planned on having some cuddle time with the fluffy monsters, too.

"We triple-checked the supply list and the maintenance upgrades are complete," Miles said. "She's ready to go when you are."

Daredevil revved her engines in agreement.

"Doesn't she need fuel?" Tony asked.

"We've scheduled stops for asteroid fields," Matt said with a soft smile. "There are more of those than inhabited planets along the way."

"At least you think they're uninhabited, we can't know for sure," Peter said, winking at Jessica. "Totally writing a paper about this depending on how much data Daredevil lets us see."

"No way, I already submitted my prospectus to my tutor," Miles protested.

"There will be plenty of research data to go around. Can I see the engine room, please please please?" Tony asked.

"The garden's on the way, we can let our new - guests - see their feeding grounds," Matt said.

Both animals skittered around on their stubby legs once they put them down but she wasn't worried about going into a battle anymore - she was worried about crawling into Matt's bunk to snuggle with the fluffballs.

* * *

"I have a heart condition," Tony said after he'd walked the perimeter of the spotless engine room. The young men did good work.

Bucky wondered if he was going to confide in the rest of the crew and was glad it wasn't a secret. He knew Stark's history from the scientist's habit of babbling as he worked. He did good work, too, and Bucky had done his best to take care of the bionic arm.

"Thought you fixed it," Matt said. "You 'sound' different now."

"I did, sort of," Tony hesitated. "I had metal embedded in my heart and I used a lot of different tricks to keep it from killing me - but some of the tricks made me sicker. The alloy - element - that Daredevil brought for me is in my bloodstream, nanites - "

"Oh wow," Bucky blurted out. "You go big, Stark. How the fuck does that work?"

"Fine as long as I'm not exposed to certain levels of natural gravity, but sometimes - " Tony shrugged. "It's easier if I just show you."

It took a few moments, longer than a blink but short enough for a double take, as the man's skin shifted into metal panels until his entire body was encased - his head inside a robot-like helmet. Hell, he could pass for one of the warrior drones they'd relied on in the war but this had a man inside it.

"Huh." Matt tilted his head and reached out to touch his arm. "Armor. It's like - "

"Daredevil," Steve finished. It wasn't like Bucky's arm.

"She definitely inspired it, but JARVIS runs the code," Tony said. "So instead of being worried that my blood cells are going to self-destruct in the wrong gravity, I have an automatic spacesuit. It's a work in progress."

"It's awesome but - doesn't it hurt?" Matt asked.

"Dad always said Starks had war in their blood," Tony said. "But no, it's comfortable and intuitive, you won't appreciate the screens and readings but it gives me a chance to process a lot of information all at once."

"You fucking love it, don't act like it's just a medical thing - you love it as much as I love this arm," Bucky called him out.

"Also true," Tony said, shifting back to normal, human, form. "Daredevil's - she's not like the other sentient warships, she's not a warship at all."

"She's better," Matt said, patting her humming walls.

"She learned from you, but think of what we could learn from her," Tony said. "Not for weapons, for - "

He was interrupted by Freckles and Fuzzy clattering down the hall with the boys' web-shooter things in their mouths.

"We'll have plenty of time to philosophize about it later. Let's get this journey started, shall we?" Matt grinned.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> *shrugs* I wanted to write something with all my faves so I sent them to space.
> 
> I have a tickle of an idea of who Matt will hook up with as endgame since they have to make a few 'stops' but I'm not sure yet. We'll see if the muses keep talking to me.


End file.
